Welcome to the Ridgeway PTCA website. Thanks for taking an interest in who we are and what we do. The PTCA is an integral part of the school community and so we think it’s important you know exactly who we are.

Who are the PTCA?

Hina Shah - Co-chair

Marcia Buxton - Co-chair

Liz Myers - treasurer (to July 2018)

Karen King - Website Co-ordinator

Our Aims and Vision for Ridgeway PTCA

Our vision is to make every child’s potential a reality by engaging and empowering families and communities, raising funds and inspiring enterprise.

Through collaboration and engagement with the headship team, teachers and staff team, children and class representatives, we want to build on the success of the PTCA an active hub to support the aspirations and needs of Ridgeway Nursery and Primary School. Our aim is to have a fully funded model, team and community for enterprise, encouraging ‘fundraising leaders’ and support for the best outcomes of our children — our community of learners.

With this vision our core function is to create interesting, enriching, inclusive opportunities for families, as well as raising money and we focus on four strands:

Collaboration - We partner together in a common purpose to achieve goals.

Empowering Children and families Families - We are committed to children thriving at school and to prompting the wellbeing of children and best outcomes for them.

Engaging Communities - We are arelevant resources for families and community for wide impact.

Our Approach:

Our approach and practices based on this vision, the values of the school and is supportive of the wider school development plan. We have committed to the following 12 principles:

As a committee we hold an AGM every October to confirm, elect committee members and officers.

We set clear goals determining annual fundraising goals towards specific project and campaigns annually — short, medium and long term goals for the school year together in collaboration with headship team, staff, parents and children.

We will ensure clear communication of goals and our many volunteering opportunities

We will share learning and celebrate successes

We will continue to build a proactive, inclusive, engaging PTCA team of committee members, volunteers and helpers with clear roles and responsibilities

We will establish a close working relationship with headship, governors, school and wider community

The PCTA includes children having the opportunity to be involved in fundraising activities and enterprise

Our events are community focused and we encourage new inspired ideas

We will provide a calendar of school activities that the PTCA usually gets involved with over the year.

We will ensure we communicate our annual Events programme including our main events each term

We believe in enterprise and innovation and so will be actively seeking engagement with local business.

We will commit to having a clear and focused strategy and fundraising plan

Getting Involved

There are many reason to engage and get involved in the PTCA, such as

You are vital to the success of the school

The support you provide and funds we raise as a PTCA benefits your children and whole school community

It's TOTALLY flexible!

There are a variety of small ways you can help and be involved — from designing a poster to helping out on a stall.

Giving 30 minutes of your time to help the PTA is invaluable.

You don't have to attend PTA meetings — you can use our contact details to send in ideas for discussion.

By volunteering to help the PTA, you'll be inspired to use whatever skills, expertise, ideas you have for a noble cause.

You’ll help establish an inclusive, supportive and encouraging community for the entire school

We are inclusive and you'll feel more connected

It’s a great way know what events are being planned, have your say or make new fundraising suggestions.

Get to know teachers and support staff on a more familiar basis.

You will be part of a like-minded network of people who all share a common purpose and goals of improving the school for all our children.

You’ll Make a difference

By volunteering to help the PTA, you'll be inspired to use whatever skills, expertise, ideas you have for a noble cause.

You’ll help establish an inclusive, supportive and encouraging community for the entire school

Here are a few specific ways to can get involved:

Get involved in events — all have varying degrees of time commitment. For example, this can be for 15 minutes, by helping put up some posters, helping to run a stall at an event. Checking whether the organisation/company you work for offers match funding

Popping into local shops, local businesses to see how they may be able to support us — having a poster in their window or donating a raffle prize

Communications. Engaging with our PTCa on our facebook page. — on social media and getting all our parents to like and share post/page and contribute

Becoming a class representative. This role is fantastic way to get to know your class and contribute to fund raising idea.

Specific tasks or roles, such as a class project, being part fo a planning team, leading a workshop, being part of face painting team, contributing to the newsletter, helping prepare class wish lists or volunteering to help with ‘previously loved’ school uniform sales.

Helping your child/ren with their class fund-raising activities

Checking with your organisation is part of a sponsor, CRS or match funding or volunteer programme.

CONTACT US

For questions, news updates, volunteering and anything else you may want to know.

Drop in to see us at school (usually Tuesdays and Fridays, 8.45 am — 9.30am)

For more about the PTCA, events and news

visit our website www.pta-events.co.uk/ridgeway

Our Fundraising

Money raised so far for 2017/18 : £11,500

This year our fundraising efforts are going towards a new trim trail for the KS1 children to use, a storage shed and awning for the 'Forest School' and also building a reserve towards funding an extension which will house amongst other things a library. All our children will benefit from these extra resources.

RIDGEWAY SCHOOL LOTTERY

In January we launched our SCHOOL LOTTERY replacing the popular 50:50 lottery we ran last year.

By partnering with other schools not only as parents, carers, teachers and our friends in the community who sign up, we have a chance to win a weekly school specific prize, but also have a chance to win the £25,000 jackpot! And if you are like us, we’d all be very pleased with that.

We are keen to have at least 50 players sign up this term meaning we are on our way to raising over £1000 to benefit our children. There is also a chance to win a Fitbit when you sign up this term.

40% of the ticket money goes directly to our school.

The Class Teacher’s Wish list

In 2017 we introduced the wish list initiative whereby teachers and children can decided what ‘small gift’ they would like for their class. Classes have received their gifts their gifts for last term which included — books, board games, and a football.